Convictions most certainly can be based on reason. In fact, many are. I am convinced that if I drop my glass on concrete from shoulder height, that it will fall and shatter. If you want to characterize the entirety and sum of human experience, complete with accompanying theoretical framework in good standing as faith, then I won't waste any more time seriously dealing with you or what you say.

conviction noun 1. an unshakable belief in something without need for proof or evidence

You know that your glasses will fall if you drop them (provided that we're on earth) because you can demonstrate it. It's not a 'conviction' in the moral sense. A conviction would be that people should drop there glasses and let them break. And that's not going to be based on reason. You can rationally prove what will happen to the glasses; you can rationally demonstrate how that will affect the person who dropped the glasses; given enough computing power, you could rationally demonstrate how the alignment of the glass shards will affect the rotation of the earth and how that altered rotation will affect the outcome of history for the next 100 years.

That's one definition. There are others. The root of the word is Latin, vincere, to overcome or to win, related to convince. I don't think you get to pull my card here on the definition of conviction. There's ample support for using it as I have, with no reference to faith at all.

That's one definition. There are others. The root of the word is Latin, vincere, to overcome or to win, related to convince. I don't think you get to pull my card here on the definition of conviction. There's ample support for using it as I have, with no reference to faith at all.

True, I'm just pointing out that the word you used for what you thought you needed to motivate atheists is most commonly used with reference to faith. There are many other words that have a less...faithy connotation.

And yes, I'm yanking your chain a bit, but the reality is, if you want to start a movement, the first thing you need to do is make sure people are hearing what you think you're saying.

"God is dead. God remains dead. And we have killed him. How shall we comfort ourselves, the murderers of all murderers? What was holiest and mightiest of all that the world has yet owned has bled to death under our knives: who will wipe this blood off us? What water is there for us to clean ourselves? What festivals of atonement, what sacred games shall we have to invent? Is not the greatness of this deed too great for us? Must we ourselves not become gods simply to appear worthy of it?"